Memorial
James A. Maiorana *74

James Maiorana, a research mathematician with the Institute for Defense Analyses, died Oct. 31, 2014, of mantle cell lymphoma. He was 68.

Maiorana graduated from Caltech in 1968 with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and physics. Inducted into the Army, he was released from active duty in June 1970 for graduate study in mathematics at Princeton. He earned a Ph.D. in 1974 and received an honorable discharge from the Army that year.

He taught and did mathematical research at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. After two years, Maiorana left Stony Brook and became a research mathematician with the Center for Communications Research at the Institute for Defense Analyses in Princeton.

Maiorana worked on solving mathematical problems in national security. What he did was classified, and he received many awards in cryptology, encryption, and related fields. He remained at the institute until his death.

Maiorana was survived by his wife, Sharon; his mother, Catherine; three brothers; and four sisters.